A Pawn's Passage

After the detour, Qi Xuansu and Qi Jiaoyao returned to the proper path toward Lingshan, though the road remained difficult. In Qi Xuansu’s eyes, Elder Yao resembled a careless craftsman who had left tools, raw materials, finished goods, half-finished experiments, and scraps scattered everywhere without tidying up. Anyone other than the craftsman herself would inevitably stumble upon entering.

The Lingshan Paradise was like a workshop. Not only were there battlefield remnants from the great war between the Ancient Witches and the Heavenly Sect, but also various creations left behind by Elder Yao. The closer one got to Lingshan, the more creations appeared, many bearing the early stylistic hallmarks of the creation project, primarily focused on corpse refinement.

According to Qi Jiaoyao, when she first came here, these creations were still dormant, and one only needed to avoid waking them. But now, things were different. Perhaps due to the collapse of the underground city, Lingshan’s defensive mechanisms had been triggered. All these creations had been activated, and they were no longer subject to the Jianxiu Mountain system, creating significant obstacles for them.

When the blood moon appeared, Qi Xuansu and Qi Jiaoyao sought shelter within a ruined temple. A stone coffin was placed there, either by Elder Yao or the successive Earthly Preceptors. At midnight, the coffin lid slid open, and the corpse inside awoke.

Given Qi Xuansu and Qi Jiaoyao’s cultivation levels, they could deal with any ordinary undead effortlessly. However, this corpse was clearly extraordinary. Its entire body looked as though it had been burned by intense fire, charred black throughout. Its iron-like skin was covered in cracks, from which eerie green flames emerged.

The corpse walked toward them, each step leaving a clear imprint on the ground, with faint traces of fire lingering within the footprints.

This flame was corpse fire.

Daoist texts recorded that among zombies, the Bronze Armored Corpse was the most renowned, impervious to blades, water, and fire. Even ordinary magical artifacts could not harm it, as it was nearly comparable to the Buddhist Golden Body. Above the Bronze Armored Corpse was the legendary Drought Demon, beyond the Five Elements and transcending the Three Realms. When it appeared, corpse fire would fill the sky, scorching everything within a thousand-kilometer radius, inevitably drawing heavenly thunder punishment.

The creation project had once attempted to replicate the Drought Demon but failed. This corpse was likely one such failed imitation.

At first glance, what little intelligence it possessed seemed to have been burned away by the corpse fire, leaving only instinct.

Given Qi Xuansu’s current cultivation, he could not kill it outright with a single sword strike, but a few more blows would suffice. However, after he attacked, he discovered that the creature still retained some intelligence. Realizing it was outmatched, it immediately turned and fled deeper into the temple.

Qi Xuansu followed closely behind.

Upon reaching the depths of the temple, Qi Xuansu was shocked to discover 17 identical stone coffins.

These coffins were not lying on the ground but stood upright, each about 3 meters tall. There were little seams, as if they were carved from single blocks of stone. The coffin lids bore carvings of numerous totems and talismans, and at each corner were carvings of four different primordial beasts, used as a suppression mechanism.

Qi Jiaoyao recognized the origin of these stone coffins. “It looks like a variant of the Daoist Eighteen Nether Attendants technique.”

The creature moved like a specter, pushing open the coffins one by one.

Inside were also corpses, though they were all mummified remains.

These dried corpses retained only a layer of grayish-white shriveled skin wrapped around brittle skeletal frames. However, blood-red stone hearts, clearly visible through the nearly translucent skin, lay within their chest cavities. The moment the coffins opened, those hearts began beating vigorously, filled with vitality.

With each heartbeat, streams of crimson blood flowed like spring water from a fountain, filling the bones and rebuilding flesh. The shriveled corpses visibly swelled and regained form at overwhelming speed, eventually igniting with the same green corpse-fire.

Qi Xuansu had assumed the 18 corpses would gather into some sort of formation, but instead, the earliest corpse devoured the other 17 entirely, with a speed comparable to Little Yin.

At the same time, a bone-chilling aura of resentment and yin energy spread rapidly. In an instant, rolling black clouds filled their vision, collapsing downward like an avalanche, reducing visibility to almost nothing. The temperature dropped sharply, becoming not merely cold but soul-piercingly frigid, mixed with the unique stench of decay associated with corpse refinement.

At some point, they could hear wails layering upon one another, growing louder as if the source of the sound were drawing nearer.

Qi Xuansu dared not charge forward rashly and simply abandoned any attempt to stop it.

Qi Jiaoyao muttered, “It’s the refining of a Taiyin Corpse.”

Before Qi Jiaoyao could explain what a Taiyin Corpse was, a terrifying surge of ferocious qi erupted. For a moment, it felt as if yin and yang had reversed, transforming the surroundings into a ghostly underworld.

When the black mist dispersed, only a charred corpse remained. It shook slightly, and black ash fell away from its surface in soft cascades, revealing the overlapping scales that had formed. These were not like fish scales, but more like armor plates with a faint green tint.

Before the Eight Tribes separated from the Daoist Order, they were the original veterans of the creation project. In their plans, the Sakka was the highest-level creation, and below that were the King Asura and the Great Asura, corresponding respectively to Pseudo-Immortals and Zaohua-stage Heavenly Beings.

This Taiyin Corpse resembled a Great Asura. It remained stiff and expressionless. Its tightly shut eyes slowly opened to reveal pitch-black orbs, without a trace of white.

In an instant, the armor-like scales spread across its entire face, while a rippling blood-red glow emerged within its black eyes. It was an eerie sight, enough to make one’s scalp tingle.

Without exchanging words, Qi Xuansu and Qi Jiaoyao attacked simultaneously, holding nothing back and aiming to achieve victory in a single strike.

The Taiyin Corpse extended its scale-covered hands, grasping Qi Jiaoyao’s longsword and Qi Xuansu’s Green Cloud. Though the sword qi tore through the scales on its palms, a murky black vapor surged from the wounds, constantly repairing the scales and flesh. At the same time, the vapor had a corrosive effect, causing the blades to hiss sharply.

Then a vast and overwhelming qi suddenly erupted from within its body.

Qi Xuansu stood slightly ahead of Qi Jiaoyao and bore the brunt of the force. His body was forced backward, his feet carving two trenches into the ground. His chest caved inward. If he did not have a Martial Arts Practitioner’s physique, he would have been gravely injured from that single exchange.

Compared to Qi Xuansu, Qi Jiaoyao, who stood slightly farther back, fared somewhat better. She retreated lightly, tapping the ground with her toes, lotus blooms forming beneath her feet with each step she took.

Qi Jiaoyao had a protective semi-immortal object called the Ruyi Stabilizing Light Barrier. Once activated, it formed a glowing, giant eggshell-looking shield around her, leaving her completely unharmed.

Relying on the Ruyi Light Barrier, she advanced instead of retreated, piercing the Taiyin Corpse through the heart with a single sword strike. Her sword qi blasted a bowl-sized hole through the corpse’s chest, yet there was no flesh or blood inside, only swirling black qi that frantically repaired the corpse body.

The Taiyin Corpse then pushed forward with a flat palm strike against Qi Jiaoyao’s barrier, producing a thunderous sound, like a massive bell being struck.

Qi Jiaoyao’s expression changed slightly. She withdrew her sword and retreated, sweeping her sleeve to release countless talisman papers, attempting to hinder the Taiyin Corpse’s pursuit.

However, the talismans turned to ash before even reaching the corpse.

Although this Taiyin Corpse was only a Great Asura, it was already close to becoming a King Asura, so it was not to be underestimated.

At that moment, the Taiyin Corpse attacked Qi Xuansu again with lightning speed, rivaling that of a Zaohua-stage Martial Arts Practitioner. Relying purely on physical strength, its punch tore through the air. The violent friction between its fist and the atmosphere produced a massive humming roar.

This punch slammed into Qi Xuansu, sending continuous shockwaves through him. Though the Taiyin Corpse trembled slightly from the recoil, it remained unmoved. The shockwaves visibly spread outward, overturning the ground beneath their feet, while the flying stones were instantly crushed into powder by the expanding waves.

Qi Xuansu stood rooted in place, unmoving. His 365 body spirits appeared as he drove a punch into the Taiyin Corpse’s forehead, sending it crashing backward. The corpse’s body was embedded entirely into the temple wall, producing a continuous cascade of cracking sounds.

Yet in the blink of an eye, the Taiyin Corpse tore itself free from the wall and returned at even greater speed, slamming into Qi Xuansu with a shoulder charge that sent him flying several meters backward.

The next moment, Qi Xuansu regained his footing. Both struck simultaneously, their fists colliding head-on, releasing another enormous ripple that spread outward.

The Taiyin Corpse swept its arm sideways, but Qi Xuansu struck its joint with the Cosmos Loop. Despite its strength, the corpse lacked the indestructible body of a true Martial Arts Practitioner. Its body structure still fell within human limits. With its joint shattered, its momentum faltered. Seizing the opportunity, Qi Xuansu drove an elbow into its jaw, forcing its head to snap upward before it crashed heavily to the ground.